Peru Bird Photography Itinerary.
B = Breakfast L=Lunch BL=Box Lunch D=Dinner

Day 1. Arrival
We presume you arrive to Lima in the late afternoon or in the evening. Therefore, we have included the Costa del Sol Airport hotel in the price. No meals

Day 2: Cusco-Sacsayhuaman-Ollantaytambo-Aguas Calientes
The tour begins with a 6 am flight from Lima. We travel over the Chincheros plain with gasping views of the glaciers of the Vilcanota range. 

Those who continue to Machu Picchu will leave their main luggage at the Pakaritampu hotel and continue with train. Those remaining in Ollantaytambo have the most of the day to get settled, and photograph birds in the Pakaritampu garden. The main attraction here is the large spectacular hummingbird Bearded Mountaineer. Also present are Black-throated and Rusty Flowerpiercers, Black-backed Grosbeak, Golden-billed Saltator, Cinereous Conebill, Green-tailed and Black-tailed Trainbearer, Sparkling Violetear and White-bellied Emerald.

You may also visited the impressive archeological Inca site at Ollantaytambo, and  photograph the colorful street life and architecture of the village.

In the evening other photographers shall be returning from Machu Picchu
Breakfast included at Costa del Sol hotel prior to departure.
Night Pakaritampu hotel. B.

Day 3: Ollantaytambo – Cusco.
After breakfast and shooting Bearded Mountaineer in the hotel garden, we shall visit a new nearby resource which has Sword-billed Hummingbird and many other species coming to feeders such as Chestnut-breasted Mountain-Finch, Red-crested Cotinga, Blue-and-Yellow Tanager and many more. Then we drive to Urubamba for lunch, and continue to Cusco in the afternoon via the wetlands of where you can photograph ducks, and with luck and playback Many-colored Rush-Tyrant.

Hotel near Plaza de Armas and dinner on your own.
B.L.

Day 4: Manu road. Cusco to Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge
Manu road is the most bird species rich road transect of the world. More than 1000 species of birds have been recorded along this road. We shall do a very early start while it is still dark to reach an area on the Manu road where we can photography birds at feeders before lunch. We pass open Andean fields and there are beautiful scenic views. We shall make a few stops after sunrise for landscape photos, and later stop for breakfast at the charming village of Paucartambo.  

After leaving Paucartambo we pass the Manu National Park Headquarters of Acjanaco, where the Manu Road suddenly drops into the Amazon cutting through amazing habitats of cloud forest, ranging in altitude from 3,600m to 600m.

In mid-morning we reach our lunch spot at Wayqecha Lodge. Around here we can photograph hummingbirds such as Rufous-capped Thornbill, Violet-throated Starfrontlet, Collared (Gould’s) Inca, Tyrian Metaltail, Amethyst-throated Sunangel and Long-tailed Sylph. There are also often good Tanager flocks passing at close range for good photo opportunities. The flocks include Hooded Mountain-Tanager, Masked Flowerpiercer, Scarlet-bellied Mountain-Tanager, Streaked Tuftedcheek and Pearled Treerunner 

After lunch we continue down the lush cloudforest for about two hours until we reach  the Andean Cock-of-the-Rock lek. Up to 10 males gather and do their display here at quite close range giving excellent photography opportunities. Before dusk we arrive at Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge where we shall spend the night. B.L.D.
Day 5: Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge to Villa Carmen.
The morning at the feeders at the Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge until lunch.

The veranda at Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge has a number of hummingbird feeders and plants that attract hummingbirds, also fruit tables for tanagers. Some of these are Violet-fronted Brilliant, Many-spotted Hummingbirds, Speckled Hummingbird, Fawn-breasted Brilliant, Wire- crested Thorntail, Wedge-billed Hummingbird and with some luck, Buff-tipped Sicklebill.  Flocks of birds also reach the fruitfeeders with Orange-bellied Euphonia, Saffron Tanager, Paradise Tanager, Silver-beaked Tanager, Orange-eared Tanager and Blue-necked Tanager.

Brown Capuchin Monkey, Tayra , Bolivian Dwarf-Squirrel and Brown Agouti are often seen at Cock of the Rock Lodge 

In the afternoon we travel to Villa Carmen. Around the ponds at Villa Carmen is good for Sunbittern and Hoatzin. There are also some fruit feeders for Russet-backed Oropendola and various Tanagers.

Night Villa Carmen. B.L.D

Day 6: Villa Carmen to Amazonia Lodge
The morning we spend at the grounds of Villa CarmenApart from the birds mentioned above, VIlla Carmen now has an Amazonian Antpitta coming to a feeding station, as well as a feeding station for the uncommon Black-capped Tinamou, as well as Cinereous and Undulated Tinamous.  Outside the cabins one can often lure the endemic Black-backed Tody-Tyrant in to view with playback.

Later we continue to Amazonia Lodge, which has one of the absolutely best birding verandas in the world. It is excellent for bird photography with many species of hummingbirds and tanagers, such as Gould’s Jewelfront, Koepcke’s Hermit, Rufous-crested Coquette, Fork-tailed Woodnymph, Grey-breasted Sabrewing and tanagers such as Magpie Tanager and Masked Crimson-Tanager. There is also a good trail by a lake where one can, with patience, get close-up photographs of Hoatzin, Sungrebe and Sunbittern. 

Mammals include Red Howler Monkey, Saddle-backed Tamarins and Squirrel Monkeys and Night Monkey.
Night at Amazonia Lodge. B. L. D.

Day 7: Amazonia Lodge to Cock of the Rock lodge
We continue to photograph birds at Amazonia Lodge in the morning.
We go back mid-morning towards Cock-of-the-Rock Lodge, with a stop at the feeders and flowers of the Bamboo Lodge on the way which is another stronghold for Rufous-crested Coquette. Second visit at the Cock-of-the-Rock lek. B. BL. D.

Night. Cock of the Rock Lodge.

Day 8: Cock of the Rock Lodge to Cusco

Additional morning in the bird rich garden of Cock of the Rock Lodge. Long drive to Cusco airport via Huacarpay Lake if time permits.
At Huacarpay lake you may photograph many ducks such as Yellow-billed Pintail, Yellow-billed Teal, Puna Teal and Andean Duck, as well as Andean Gull and Puna Ibis. With playback you could lure Many-colored Rush-Tyrant, Wren-like Rushbird and Plumbeous Rail into view.

Flight to Lima leaves at 16:45 and arrives at 18:08. Next flight to Tarapoto leaves at 20:05 and arrives in Tarapoto at 21:29. Dinner not included but It leaves time to get some fast food dinner at the airport or a meal on either of the flights.
Hotel Cumbaza.
B.BL.

Day 9: Tarapoto-Aguas Verdes
We make an early start for the Yurimaguas road to AKONABIKH reserve where there are hummingbird feeders that attract Koepcke's Hermit and Gould's Jewelfront, and many more. A half hour hike takes us to a lek with Golden-headed Manakins. 

We drive towards Moyobamba to have lunch at Waqanki. It will give us additional opportunity to photograph Golden-tailed Sapphire, Blue-tailed Emerald, White-necked Jacobin and Rufous-crested Coquette.

After lunch the trip continues over the Moybamba/Rioja plain checking out ponds and rice paddies for Pale-eyed Blackbird, Black-capped Donacobious, Least Grebe and Black-billed Seed-Finch

Later we reach Aguas Verdes, where there is a newly opened basic lodge full of feeders.
Here there is a fantastic feeding station for Rufous-breasted Wood-Quail and Little and Cinereous Tinamou. Also, Yellow-billed Sparrow comes to the grains provided from the feeding station. There is also an area set up for hummingbirds. The specialty here are Green-fronted and Blue-fronted Lancebill, as well as Wire-crested Thorntail, but there are loads of other hummers too. 

Night at Aguas Verdes. There are only 8 beds – only double rooms.  Single rooms can only be granted if there are vacant rooms. B. L. D.

Day 10: Aguas Verdes to Abra Patricia Owlet Lodge.
At Afluentes there are feeders that attract Ecuadorian Piedtail, Napo Sabrewing and White-tipped Sicklebill. Higher up at Venceremos we have seen Tawny-bellied Hermit.  Another feeding station worth checking out is the one at Trocha Sunangel, where Royal Sunangel often is present.

Later we stop at Fundo Alto Nieva for the hummingbird feeders that sometimes have Rufous-vented Whitetip, as well as Royal Sunangel, Long-tailed Sylph, Greenish Puffleg, and many more. We shall also accompany a local guide to try to see and photograph the rare Ochre-fronted Antpitta which is being fed nearby.

We arrive at Owlet Lodge at nightfall. Those who are still keen may set out pretty much straight away to try to see and photograph the extremely rare Long-whiskered Owlet.

Night at Owlet Lodge. B.L.D

Day 11. Owlet Lodge to Huembo
The feeders have Emerald-bellied Puffleg, Sword-billed Hummingbird, Peruvian Rackettail, Bronzy Inca, Violet-fronted Brilliant, Long-tailed Sylph and Collared Inca. From the lookout one may often see White-capped Tanager.

We leave after breakfast but before leaving we shall try to see and photograph Chestnut Antpitta that is being fed and Lulu’s Tody-Tyrant that responds to playback.

We continue to Pomacochas where we spend some time practicing bird photography at the Hummingbird feeders at Huembo with close-up views of the Marvelous Spatuletail and other hummers such as Collared Inca, Chestnut-breasted Coronet, Sparkling Violet-ear, White-bellied Woodstar, White-bellied Hummingbird and Bronzy Inca. A rare visitor is Little Woodstar.
Night: Huembo Lodge. B.L.D.

Day 12: Hummingbirds at Huembo and drive to Waqanki, Moyebamba. 

We shall be visiting a lek site for Marvelous Spatuletail in the morning or have some additional time for photographing the Spatuletail at the feeders The lek is active on and off between November to April but some luck is also needed. 

We will then drive back to Moyobamba making some additional stops on the way if we want to spend more time at some feeder stations

The hummingbird-feeders at Waqanki are fantastic. It is often possible to get over 15 species of hummingbirds in only a couple of hours. The star species are Rufous-crested Coquette and Black-throated Hermit. B.L. D.

Day 13. Drive to Tarapoto
We spend an additional morning by the feeders at Waqanki.
Later on the way to Tarapoto we shall stop to look at Oilbirds at the Quiscarumi gorge. For good quality photos you will need a powerful flash, but with high ISO and good aperture, you can get decent record shots for sharing on social media. Lunch is not included but we shall have some fruit and biscuits in the vehicle as snacks.  B.

Flight to Lima departs at 14:05 arriving in Lima 15:29 with plenty of time to check in with evening flights to Europe or North America.